Strange Moments From What's My Line

Here are a few clips of what were possibly the strangest moments of this lauded CBS Game Show, which aired on Sunday Nights for seventeen years (1950 - 1967) and was hosted by John Daly. This classic program, the premise of which simply was a panel of 4 celebrities try to name a contestants occupation, was a staple of mid 20th Century television. The show aired live every Sunday, and sometimes there were some unforseen events. Here are a few of them. First, Mystery Guest Melina Mercouri and John Daly are a bit rattled by an intruder who suddenly pops up and starts to shill for a "dating service" before he is quickly escorted away by Johnny Olson and producer Gil Fates, the next one has Buddy Hackett introducing long-time show stalwart Dorothy Kilgallen and she appears to be drunk possibly, which is rather unsettling, and finally, comedian Henry Morgan expresses displeasure at also long-time stalwart Bennett Cerf's uneasy intro and him and John Daly's dull banter. All from the early to mid 1960s and all very strange!

• Category

  Entertainment

[alanwatts1]

Google Ron Pataky and you find two photos of him standing next to Dorothy Kilgallen taken in the lobby of a Broadway theater in 1964.

Other Google search results for Ron show you he is trying to become famous by expressing himself in at least three different formats: photography of outer space, poetry, a memoir of his childhood.

In 1964 and 1965, Ron was seeking fame in other ways that could have worked at the time: composer of songs for Jerry Vale, syndicated newspaper column, disc jockey.

[alanwatts1]

Ron Pataky's attempts to become famous in several different ways in 1964 and 1965 suggest that Italian - American criminals, not the CIA, recruited him to spy on Dorothy Kilgallen.

Ron wrote a newspaper column on entertainment at the time, but only people in Columbus, Ohio could read it. He hoped the column would become nationally syndicated. It never did.

He wanted to get famous in one way or another. If that describes you in 1964 and 1965, you want Italian - American criminals, not CIA.

[KamiKibo]

Anyone know what the deal was with the Set Crasher?

I read the description but I couldn't make it out exactly what he was saying.

[alanwatts1]

@ Rick Charles No, it wasn't. Whether or not she had a drinking problem can be determined if you read some of what she wrote for newspapers and magazines and listen to surviving recordings of her doing talk radio and talk TV. By "talk TV" I mean the shows other than "What's My Line?" on which she appeared.

"What's My Line?" put more pressure on her than anything else even though it occupied less than 90 minutes of her time each week, and all the panelists took long summer vacations.

[Rick Charles]

Was this one of Dorothy "tipsy" shows? She had a problem with alcohol but she could control it rather well and did a great job, usually, on WML.

[Stavin Chain]

Oh, yes...it was live, week after week...and the highlight of my week was my parents letting me stay up late on Sunday nights to watch it. I had a crush on Dorothy Kilgallen almost as big as the one I had on Carol Burnett...

[hifijohn]

was this show live? If not why not just edit out this stuff?

[Michael White]

The other way 'round: Daly married (as his second wife) Chief Justice Warren's daughter.

[Frank Sadat]

I agree. Morgan was right. No ONE is a bigger pompous ass on this show than Cerf.

[Calikokatspiano]

the relieving unit..

[Claire Spottedhorse]

Her voice, as she begins to speak seems a tad lower than normal, but perfectly clear until that moment. She could have suffered a small stroke. Her speech, as she trails off, seems to match that of someone who has had a stroke.